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Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by tigerdar

When asked about his time in the CFL he stated

"... it was not a complete waste of time, but it's a different game, different speed. I am 100% confident I will come in the AAF and dominate. I've been watching them and most of the players are scrubs"

I would not be surprised if he intentionally violated specifics of his contract to get released.

That sounds about right. He might to have only missed an appointment for a drug or alcohol test to void the contract. I feel sorry for Kavis, but he should have realized the character of the player he was dealing with. I hope Johnny Football falls flat on his face down there or both new leagues fold and has nowhere to play.

I would not be surprised if he intentionally violated specifics of his contract to get released.

Sounds like maybe the AAF is grasping for straws to get more than friends and family to games? I'm kind of leaning to one of the other things. It seemed a bit puzzling that with Manziel in place Reed would go out and make sure the other 4 QBs were secured to deals. It's like maybe the Als and CFL already knew back in December that this day was coming.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

That trade will go down as the most idiotic football decision of ALL time. How Kavis remains as a GM is beyond me. What happens if those two 1st round picks become somewhat productive? What happens if they become National starters? What if they turn out to be all-stars? This trade stinks from all angles? That being said....MTL just became a better team today? Instead of 1 win they get 2. Wonder if Pipkin goes back?

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

To speak to Turftoe's point, Kavis was likely guilty of trying to be the "redemptive father figure" like what he did when Messam was here.

It's an important effort, to be sure, but I feel like football operations and character reformation are better kept separate, especially at the pro level.

Whenever someone talks about player redemption I think of Lawrence Phillips, I'm not sure OK he might have been before your time but google him otherwise. I know there are times when a 2nd chance works (Cris Carter) but more often than not you get the Lawrence Phillips scenario.

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Originally Posted by SKIP12

That trade will go down as the most idiotic football decision of ALL time. How Kavis remains as a GM is beyond me. What happens if those two 1st round picks become somewhat productive? What happens if they become National starters? What if they turn out to be all-stars? This trade stinks from all angles? That being said....MTL just became a better team today? Instead of 1 win they get 2. Wonder if Pipkin goes back?

Pipkin has raw talent I kind of liked him last year what I saw of him.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by Hammer24

Sounds like maybe the AAF is grasping for straws to get more than friends and family to games? I'm kind of leaning to one of the other things. It seemed a bit puzzling that with Manziel in place Reed would go out and make sure the other 4 QBs were secured to deals. It's like maybe the Als and CFL already knew back in December that this day was coming.

Definitely looking for a TV ratings draw. They are coming off very sleazy though, especially with their NFL association. Polian was a high character person in Winnipeg and Buffalo and thru his NFL career, maybe someone pulling the strings above him.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Good riddance, there was so much hype (cough TSN cough) and yet he goes the same way as every other hotshot American who screwed the pooch down south and thought he could just waltz up here and dominate.

The fact that he’s already apparently got an AAF deal in place makes me think he was negotiating with them already which was in breach of his contract. It would’ve leaked if he did something of the criminal variety again.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

What the heck is going on with JM. Still two # 1 draft choices going to Hamilton. Wonder if the CFL will void those choices , hopefully.

I wouldn't support voiding the trade. Hamilton had Westerman and Williams both go down with season ending injuries in that deal as well, and there wouldn't have been any re-writing of it for that.

In the end, it was a gamble on the upside that was perceived with Manziel and thoughts of redemption and second chances. An expensive gamble to say the least, but Hamilton didn't sell them damaged goods and it was a buyer-beware kind of deal.

Originally Posted by tigerdar

When asked about his time in the CFL he stated

"... it was not a complete waste of time, but it's a different game, different speed. I am 100% confident I will come in the AAF and dominate. I've been watching them and most of the players are scrubs"

He's all class, right to the end.

I wasn't a fan of him coming to the CFL - like many I didn't buy that he'd light the league on fire up here, whether it be the differences in the game, or the lack of commitment to his craft. I came around and started to buy in a little when he was seeming to be a solid citizen in his role behind Masoli, and I didn't think that he was hurting the league - sold some jerseys and proved out that the caliber of play was better than many American pundits give it credit as. I was still happy to see things not exactly coming easy, but could also see some glimpses of potential worth fostering.

That he continually "had the flu" when media availability was required, including the recent logo launch, and stories that I've heard from people within the Mtl organization demonstrated that he was anything but a committed team player from an organizational standpoint. I haven't heard anything negative about him in the locker room or as a teammate, but he was a disappointment in terms of expectations on the community level - he's always seemed to think he's bigger than the game, and I'm not left changing my mind on that.

That he hasn't shown any personal ethic or character development in honouring the terms of an agreement that he signed maybe shouldn't come as any surprise, but it's wholly disappointing all the same.

Originally Posted by tigerdar

Whenever someone talks about player redemption I think of Lawrence Phillips, I'm not sure OK he might have been before your time but google him otherwise. I know there are times when a 2nd chance works (Cris Carter) but more often than not you get the Lawrence Phillips scenario.

- - - Updated - - -

Pipkin has raw talent I kind of liked him last year what I saw of him.

Lawrence Phillips is about as tragic as these stories come. I had a chance to talk to Jim Barker about him after he acquired him in Calgary... it seems to me that they had moved on from Kelvin Anderson to make room, or possibly another aging but productive back that was a long-time Stamp. He talked about guys like Phillips growing up in an environment that would be utterly foreign to Canadians in terms of values, ideas about masculinity, treatment of people, exposure to violence, etc, and, like many in the GM/Coach roles, he felt he could make a difference and get through to the guy. In the one sense, you don't want them to stop believing and trying, but that one was catastrophic - less on the football side of things, but more so on just the person that second (or was it third, fourth or fifth) chance.

Originally Posted by glenvb

Not sure about Pipkin. He may be one of those guys that, once teams have film and can scheme him, they can control him. Hope not, honestly. Mtl needs a revival.

Who else have they got?

Matt Shiltz was the guy that had won the role out of camp last year, beating Pipkin out. I believe he'll contend for a top-two role with the team.

Vernon Adams is also a guy with some tools, but along the same lines as Brandon Bridge, there are questions about him putting it all together.

I think Pipken showed enough to intrigue me too - of course, it's rare that guys emerge quickly (and sustainably) in the CFL, so it may require some patience.

I do wonder if they consider going back and re-signing Drew Willy now, or even Kevin Glenn - not as a starter, but as a mentor to the young QBs and for that veteran presence in the film room.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by SKIP12

That trade will go down as the most idiotic football decision of ALL time. How Kavis remains as a GM is beyond me. What happens if those two 1st round picks become somewhat productive? What happens if they become National starters? What if they turn out to be all-stars? This trade stinks from all angles? That being said....MTL just became a better team today? Instead of 1 win they get 2. Wonder if Pipkin goes back?

Sometimes desperate times lead to desperate measures and the QB situation in Montreal was bordering on desperate. And of course there was the overlap where Alouette HC Mike Sherman was HC at Texas A&M during Manziel's redshirt year. Sherman may have had a lot to do with Montreal going after Manziel.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by Hammer24

Sometimes desperate times lead to desperate measures and the QB situation in Montreal was bordering on desperate. And of course there was the overlap where Alouette HC Mike Sherman was HC at Texas A&M during Manziel's redshirt year. Sherman may have had a lot to do with Montreal going after Manziel.

To me it all boils down to Kavis. He settled for the wrong coaching staff (even though Claybrooks turned him down he probably could have found somebody with some decent CFL experience like Thorpe or LaPolice or someone of that ilk) and went after the wrong QBs IMO. If they never went after Manziel perhaps they would have ended up with Jennings for this upcoming season instead of what they got. Maybe he's getting pressure from above on some of these decisions but they are still the wrong decisions. It'll be another long year in Montreal.

Last edited by adb; 02-27-2019 at 02:58 PM.

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Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by adb

To me it all boils down to Kavis. He settled for the wrong coaching staff (even though Claybrooks turned him down he probably could have found somebody with some decent CFL experience like Thorpe or LaPolice or someone of that ilk) and went after the wrong QBs IMO. If they never went after Manziel perhaps they would have ended up with Jennings for this upcoming season instead of what they got. Maybe he's getting pressure from above on some of these decisions but they are still the wrong decisions. It'll be another long year in Montreal.

To a degree, there isn't the same recipe for building a team in every city.

Thorpe or Lapo wouldn't likely have been that much different than Chapdelaine or other perceived 'recycled' options, and there is some case to be made that Montreal needed to do something to satisfy the market... either someone with the NFL pedigree, in hoping to find Trestman 2.0, or possibly someone with a strong Montreal football tie in and bilingualism. I look at it as needing to hit the deep ball instead of safely going for the first down.

Ultimately, GMs are going to be measured on results... whether they be strictly wins and losses or another criteria set by the club. Kavis will be judged on those, but if his bosses dealt him a hand that called for a higher risk strategy and a possible short-cut to bouncing back in the Montreal market, he may get more rope to let things play out.

By no means am I predicting a worst-to-first type of season in Mtl, but I think they've had a strong off-season for the most part, and do expect that they'll be improved over last year in a division where the top dog has likely taken a few steps back.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

It certainly sounds like it wasn't a case where he was out of the CFL because of negotiating with the AAF, but rather, that he messed up somewhere along the line with the conditions that the CFL had laid out. Given the statement that he had an opportunity to rectify it and chose not to, it sounds like perhaps it was more along the line of not living up to agreements for counselling, courses, or elements that way, rather than a failed drug test or something like that.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by turftoe27

What the heck is going on with JM. Still two # 1 draft choices going to Hamilton. Wonder if the CFL will void those choices , hopefully.

No way the CFL could void the picks in what was a multi-piece deal. At best they could give Montreal a compensatory pick or two but oh boy would that be opening up a precedent setting 45 gallon drum of worms for the future. Everybody would be looking for compensation for a trade that turned sour down the road.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by tigerdar

When asked about his time in the CFL he stated

"... it was not a complete waste of time, but it's a different game, different speed. I am 100% confident I will come in the AAF and dominate. I've been watching them and most of the players are scrubs"

Wow, he is a real a$$.

Originally Posted by SKIP12

That trade will go down as the most idiotic football decision of ALL time. How Kavis remains as a GM is beyond me. What happens if those two 1st round picks become somewhat productive? What happens if they become National starters? What if they turn out to be all-stars? This trade stinks from all angles? That being said....MTL just became a better team today? Instead of 1 win they get 2. Wonder if Pipkin goes back?

Kavis could have been receiving directions from the owner or the owner’s son.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by Hammer24

No way the CFL could void the picks in what was a multi-piece deal. At best they could give Montreal a compensatory pick or two but oh boy would that be opening up a precedent setting 45 gallon drum of worms for the future. Everybody would be looking for compensation for a trade that turned sour down the road.

I guess it's that I'm feeling sorry for the Als fans. Losing two choices when Laval and U. Montreal are consistently producing top quality home province CFL prospects. It was the CFL that allowed JM to play here and likely would not have allowed another player of lesser notoriety to do so. Special treatment to get interest from U.S. fans.

To void his contract all JM had to do was not fulfill one of likely many restrictions. Suddenly he is a free agent and can sign anywhere. If he goes to the AAF he gets 70 G's and if stayed in Montreal he stood to pocket 400 G's , if he made the team. He might have even thought the Als would release him and decided to cut ties first. Doesn't seem to be any tears shed by Mtl or the CFL in JM leaving.

Definitely a bone headed move by Kavis to give up so much to Hamilton. Possibly he should have included terms that JM has to be the starter at QB for a certain length of time to get all the compensation from the trade. Who knows , maybe a big XFL deal coming up for JM. No way Manziel can use the AAf or XFL to get back in the NFL. From what he showed last year he just does not have the arm or the dedication.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Boom!!! Great QB with a lot of injuries piling up over the years. Always a hard decision to retire but he's had a great career and has a nice ring to show for it as well as an MOP and GC MVP. A leader in the locker room as well so that will hurt them a bit, but with Mike taking the reins I'm sure the Lions won't have a hole there.

Just a quick shout out to Mr."Winning isn't everything" for pis*ing away not one but TWO HoF QB's. F*ck you Len and good riddance.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

I've had the pleasure of getting to know Travis over the past few years, and everything that people say about the man is accurate. Truly one of the most engaging guys I've met in the league and has a true gift for making people feel important!

What a contrast on back to back days between Manziel departing the CFL and Lulay departing... not only in terms of on-field accomplishments, but in having made the league better for his presence.

I'm happy that he's at peace with his decision, and I know that it's been a consideration in the last few offseasons where he just found he wasn't ready to hang them up. This won't be the last we see of Travis.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by GreatWhiteNorth

This won't be the last we see of Travis.

He seems like the type of person who will be very good at whatever post-career path he chooses. If coaching is a consideration it's a bit too late to find a CFL gig. After his excellent work on TSN at Grey Cup I think we will wind up seeing a lot of him there this season. Not a bad way to stay involved in the game and keep himself busy this year while he sorts things out in his mind for moving forward.

Re: CFL Offseason 2018/19

Originally Posted by Hammer24

He seems like the type of person who will be very good at whatever post-career path he chooses. If coaching is a consideration it's a bit too late to find a CFL gig. After his excellent work on TSN at Grey Cup I think we will wind up seeing a lot of him there this season. Not a bad way to stay involved in the game and keep himself busy this year while he sorts things out in his mind for moving forward.

He was actually working with Sportsnet the past few Grey Cups... you know, carrying Arash Madani's water. Would love to seem him cross the way to TSN.

He also did some PA announcing at the BC High school football championships in BC Place last fall. Wouldn't surprise me at all if there is something in the media in his more immediate future, and ultimately coaching down the line. I agree though, he's the type of guy that's going to be good at whatever he does.